Let Me Love You | Toni Kroos

Chapter 20 - New Additions

Toni's POV

"So, are you going back?" Felix asked as we waited to collect our bags, together with our parents.

"No," I said immediately.

He laughed. "Really? Don't you want to think about it first?"

"I've been thinking about it for the past few weeks," I told him. "They offered me a pay rise. And first-team football."

"Then why didn't you accept it?"

"I love Bayern. I know I've only been here for like, two years? Three years? But I love it here. And I want to fight for it, I want to achieve greater things with this team. And since they've also called me back, how could I reject them?"

"And you want to be with Gabi."

"Yeah...and I want to be with Gabi."

"Aww, you guys are so sweet," he punched me on the shoulder.

We grabbed our bags and headed out to arrivals, where the first person I saw was Gabi, standing there waiting for us patiently. She stood upright when she saw us, keeping her eyes fixed on us as we crossed the barrier, and then she started running towards us.

"Hi," she breathed into my ear as she crashed into me. "Hey, guys," she said to Felix and my parents, who smiled back at her.

"Hey, Gabi," Felix said, giving her a gentle pat on the back. "It's nice to see you again."

"Yeah, you too," she smiled. She grabbed my hand, and we fell behind, letting the three of them walk ahead of us. "How's everything?" she asked me.

"Everything's fine," I smiled back at her. "How about you?"

"Me, too. Thanks for coming back."

"Where else would I go?"

"Rostock?"

I laughed. "Yeah, I dragged them back here."

Her eyes widened in shock. "Really? Why? Shouldn't you guys be back at Rostock then?"

"They're at Rostock every day," I told her. "Maybe it's time for them to come here. And we've already spent some time in Bremen, since Felix is moving there."

She gave me a shy smile. "Stop making excuses."

"What?" I teased, and she continued staring at me. "Okay, and I missed you."

She giggled and dragged me to a cab that was behind the others'. We sat in silence throughout most of the ride, but it wasn't awkward at all. I could tell she was thinking about it; she was thinking if I was going to leave her for Leverkusen again when the summer ended. I waited for her to ask, but she never opened her mouth.

Her hand crept over to mine and squeezed it before holding it tightly. I tried to look at her facial expression, but she was looking downwards. "Hey," I nudged her. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she finally looked up at me, her bright blue eyes filled with longing. "Um...can I ask you something?"

"Of course, silly girl."

"Are you...going to stay with Leverkusen?"

I told her everything about Bayer's offer – the salary, the promise of playing time, everything I could ever have asked for. I told her that their offer was much more attractive than my current one at Bayern, which it really was.

"Oh," she said when I was done explaining. "So...you're going to stay with them?"

"What do you think?"